AZERBAIJAN DENIES TORTURING ARMENIAN POWS
Interfax
March 23 2009
Russia
The Azeri Defense Ministry has denied accusations by the Armenian
Defense Ministry alleging that Azerbaijan subjects Armenian prisoners
of war to psychological pressure and physical torture to force them
to make false statements.
"Armenia has been slandering Azerbaijan for years, and I perceive
such information calmly, because this is characteristic of Armenia,"
Eldar Sabiroglu, a spokesman for the Azeri Defense Ministry, told
Interfax on Friday.
Armenian servicemen voluntarily surrender to Azerbaijan exactly
because of torture in their own armed forces, Sabiroglu said. They
"have voluntarily surrendered, and it is exactly because of having
been tortured that they left their military unit and defected to the
Azeri side," he said.
The Armenian Defense Ministry statement "has absolutely no grounds,"
Sabiroglu said.
"They always seek to blacken us and conceal the truth. This time
around, the Armenian side is deliberately spreading such fabrications
in order to damage Azerbaijan’s international image," he said.
The Armenian Defense Ministry had claimed earlier that Armenian
servicemen were subjected to torture and psychological pressure in
Azeri captivity.
"According to reliable information we have received, Armenian
servicemen are subjected to special psychological and moral pressure,
physical torture, and violence on the part of Azeri special services,
which prompts them to make false statements on renouncing their
Armenian citizenship or their desire to emigrate to third countries,"
the Armenian Defense Ministry said in a statement circulated in
Yerevan on Friday.
10:36 AM MSK
Azerbaijan denies torturing Armenian POWs (Part 2)
BAKU March 23
The Azeri Defense Ministry has denied accusations by the Armenian
Defense Ministry alleging that Azerbaijan subjects Armenian prisoners
of war to psychological pressure and physical torture to force them
to make false statements.
"Armenia has been slandering Azerbaijan for years, and I perceive
such information calmly, because this is characteristic of Armenia,"
Eldar Sabiroglu, a spokesman for the Azeri Defense Ministry, told
Interfax on Friday.
Armenian servicemen voluntarily surrender to Azerbaijan exactly
because of torture in their own armed forces, Sabiroglu said. They
"have voluntarily surrendered, and it is exactly because of having
been tortured that they left their military unit and defected to the
Azeri side," he said.
The Armenian Defense Ministry statement "has absolutely no grounds,"
Sabiroglu said.
"They always seek to blacken us and conceal the truth. This time
around, the Armenian side is deliberately spreading such fabrications
in order to damage Azerbaijan’s international image," he said.
The Armenian Defense Ministry had claimed earlier that Armenian
servicemen were subjected to torture and psychological pressure in
Azeri captivity.
"According to reliable information we have received, Armenian
servicemen are subjected to special psychological and moral pressure,
physical torture, and violence on the part of Azeri special services,
which prompts them to make false statements on renouncing their
Armenian citizenship or their desire to emigrate to third countries,"
the Armenian Defense Ministry said in a statement circulated in
Yerevan on Friday.
"This form of treatment of prisoners of war on the part of Azeri
official structures and denying them the right to correspond with their
relatives and parents is a gross violation of international law, in
particular the third and fourth Geneva conventions. The Armenian side
always gives Azeri prisoners of war an opportunity to have contact
with relatives and receive medical assistance," the ministry said.
Earlier, Azeri television channel ANS said three Armenian soldiers
had voluntarily crossed into Azeri territory and did not wish to
return to Armenia.
In explaining their alleged defection in an interview with ANS,
Grant Markosian, Vartan Sarkisian and Rafik Gevorkian complained
about conditions of service in Nagorno-Karabakh and neighboring Azeri
districts occupied by Armenia. They spoke about alleged hazing by
fellow soldiers, shortages of food, and brutality on the part of
officers.
The three soldiers crossed the disengagement line between Armenian
and Azeri forces in Agdam district in Azerbaijan and were arrested
by Azeri authorities, the channel said.
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress
